Nissan quality Vs. Toyota
- Thread starter mike4runner
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fit_of_vanity
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My sister's husband has 200,000+ miles on his Pathfinder.. as far as I know he's never had any major problems with it.
G
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Hey to the guy with the 350Z... I drove a 2003 hard-top manual and then a 2004 convertible automatic and thought it was a really fun car to drive, but I noticed it was extremely noisey, especially the road noise from the tires - it was almost deafening even at low speed. And the interior on the hard top seemed pretty rattly especially with the guy's aftermarket system on even at low-volume. The 'vert's interior seemed a little nicer I think mainly because of the very clean convertible top design with the cover and windscreen that comes up as it goes down. It looked classy with the top down.
Nissan was comparable to Honda in terms of reliability 7-10 years ago (depending on model). Once they almost went backrupt they changed their business model to cheapen down almost every aspect of their vehicle lineup and start building them here in the US with very little attention paid to QC. They are now very profitable again but they're starting to pay for it in their reputation as a "japanese brand". Heck, their 90 day initial defect stat for 2003 was slightly worse than average and that even includes all American and European brands as well.
I had a 95 Maxima V6 5-speed loaded up, and it was a really fun car with pretty good (although still improvable) reliability. After driving a 2002 Altima and comparing it to my old Maxima, if you gave me the choice between the two in equal condition/milage, I'd take the Maxima hands-down, even though it was a 7 year older design. Even the Bose stereo in my Maxima was very impressive, the Bose stereo in the Altima I drove sounded like rattly distorted poop on a stick.
Anyhow... the VQ motor is still just as good if not better than ever, and buying Infiniti may help solve some of those initial quality problems too... just avoid the QX and steer more toward vehicles like the Q45 or M45 or at least the FX of G. The I35 and QX have some issues.
fit_of_vanity said:
Nissan was comparable to Honda in terms of reliability 7-10 years ago (depending on model). Once they almost went backrupt they changed their business model to cheapen down almost every aspect of their vehicle lineup and start building them here in the US with very little attention paid to QC. They are now very profitable again but they're starting to pay for it in their reputation as a "japanese brand". Heck, their 90 day initial defect stat for 2003 was slightly worse than average and that even includes all American and European brands as well.
I had a 95 Maxima V6 5-speed loaded up, and it was a really fun car with pretty good (although still improvable) reliability. After driving a 2002 Altima and comparing it to my old Maxima, if you gave me the choice between the two in equal condition/milage, I'd take the Maxima hands-down, even though it was a 7 year older design. Even the Bose stereo in my Maxima was very impressive, the Bose stereo in the Altima I drove sounded like rattly distorted poop on a stick.
Anyhow... the VQ motor is still just as good if not better than ever, and buying Infiniti may help solve some of those initial quality problems too... just avoid the QX and steer more toward vehicles like the Q45 or M45 or at least the FX of G. The I35 and QX have some issues.
Threxx, the wifes 2003 350Z is the coupe. I bet that the 2003 that you drove was used and had feathered front tires (common problem). Noise gets louder as you slow down from the feathering. Nissan gave me a new set of front tires at 5K miles for this reason. Seems like an alignment problem from the factory. Now have 7K miles and no feathering and it is quiet as a sports car normally is. I agree that the interior is not as nice as the 4runner. Other than that it is real fun to drive and one of the best looking sports cars on the road at any price (coupe that is). I've owned several Z's, Mazda RX7TT an Acura NSX and all of the Porsche models and the new 350Z is a lot of bang for the buck. Personally Toyota/Lexus does not make anything that comes close to the Z, I wish they would, I'm sure it would be nice.
Thai
Elite Member
This should answer this thread!
(08:33:53 July 23, 2004)
Nissan hustles engineers to U.S. to aid new-vehicle quality effort
By LINDSAY CHAPPELL AND YUZO YAMAGUCHI | Automotive News
Nissan Motor Co. has dispatched about 200 engineers from Japan to address quality problems at Nissan's new assembly plant in Canton, Miss.
The engineers also are examining Nissan's car factory in Smyrna, Tenn., a component engineering center in Farmington Hills, Mich., and an unspecified number of supplier plants.
The move comes just weeks after Nissan's dismal showing in the 2004 J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Study of consumer perceptions of product quality. The first three nameplates launched at Canton - the Quest minivan, Titan full-sized pickup and Pathfinder Armada SUV - each scored last in their segments.
CEO Carlos Ghosn last week addressed Canton's quality issues during the Nissan shareholders' meeting in Tokyo.
"You can't expect a new plant to start to give the same level of efficiency as other plants which are 25 years old," he told shareholders.
According to the J.D. Power study, complaints about vehicles built in Canton ranged from wind noise, loose molding and brake pedal vibration to paint chips and blemishes.
The $1.4 billion Canton plant is only a year old. It was built in just two years. The assembly plant produces four all-new models using a new work force, a new U.S. engine operation and new suppliers.
Despite the quality problems, Nissan's U.S. sales are healthy. For the first five months of 2004, combined U.S. Nissan and Infiniti sales were up 28.2 percent.
But Kunihiko Shiohara, analyst at Goldman Sachs (Japan) Ltd., is alarmed. "Nissan tapped into new segments quickly," he says. "So it seems like Nissan gave quality a second priority."
(08:33:53 July 23, 2004)
Nissan hustles engineers to U.S. to aid new-vehicle quality effort
By LINDSAY CHAPPELL AND YUZO YAMAGUCHI | Automotive News
Nissan Motor Co. has dispatched about 200 engineers from Japan to address quality problems at Nissan's new assembly plant in Canton, Miss.
The engineers also are examining Nissan's car factory in Smyrna, Tenn., a component engineering center in Farmington Hills, Mich., and an unspecified number of supplier plants.
The move comes just weeks after Nissan's dismal showing in the 2004 J.D. Power and Associates Initial Quality Study of consumer perceptions of product quality. The first three nameplates launched at Canton - the Quest minivan, Titan full-sized pickup and Pathfinder Armada SUV - each scored last in their segments.
CEO Carlos Ghosn last week addressed Canton's quality issues during the Nissan shareholders' meeting in Tokyo.
"You can't expect a new plant to start to give the same level of efficiency as other plants which are 25 years old," he told shareholders.
According to the J.D. Power study, complaints about vehicles built in Canton ranged from wind noise, loose molding and brake pedal vibration to paint chips and blemishes.
The $1.4 billion Canton plant is only a year old. It was built in just two years. The assembly plant produces four all-new models using a new work force, a new U.S. engine operation and new suppliers.
Despite the quality problems, Nissan's U.S. sales are healthy. For the first five months of 2004, combined U.S. Nissan and Infiniti sales were up 28.2 percent.
But Kunihiko Shiohara, analyst at Goldman Sachs (Japan) Ltd., is alarmed. "Nissan tapped into new segments quickly," he says. "So it seems like Nissan gave quality a second priority."
Thai
Elite Member
The above article is not surprising...new plants + too many new car designs + cheap prices = quality issues.
Nissan/Infiniti is turning new models left and right...i predict that down the road, Nissan/Infiniti will suffer, esp. in JD Powers ratings over the next few years. The only saving grace for Nissan is that all of these new models are based on only a few platforms, which may help in quality control (if the platform is solid in design) and keeping cost low.
Nissan/Infiniti is turning new models left and right...i predict that down the road, Nissan/Infiniti will suffer, esp. in JD Powers ratings over the next few years. The only saving grace for Nissan is that all of these new models are based on only a few platforms, which may help in quality control (if the platform is solid in design) and keeping cost low.
